6th Cavalry Group

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	"Ducit Amor Patriae" Led by Love of Country
	Regular Army

Normandy  //  Northern France // Ardennes - Alsace // Rhineland // Central Europe

Commander: Edward M. Fickett, COL, CAV

Presidential Unit Citation  6th Cavalry Group   "Harlange Pocket"

The 6th Cavalry Group (Mecz), under command of Colonel Edward M. Fickett, Cavalry, consisting of the 6th and 28th Cavalry Squadron, landed in France on 10 July 1944 .  The group was trained for the mission of establishing the Army Information Service for the Third United States Army while in England and in Normandy .  IN July 1944, the Third United States Army became operational and with it the 6th Cavalry Group.  Until 1 November 1944 the group operated the Army Information Service for the Third Army, performing an invaluable mission for the Army Commander in keeping him completely informed as to the activities and location of his forward troops.  This information was obtained by front line patrols and reported back by radio and telephone, direct to Army G3.  Early in November 1944, the 6th Cavalry Group (Mecz) was reinforced as a mobile task force to be employed by Third Army.  The operation of the Army Information Service was continued, but on a reduced scale until 1 December 1944 .  On this day, the 6th Cavalry Group (Mecz) (Reinf) was committed in a wooded area northeast of St Avold, France , west of Saarbrucken . 

After taking Carling , France , and L’Hopital, Germany , the group pushed rapidly to the east of the Saar and Moselle Rivers in the vicinity of Volklingen Germany .  The group was relieved of this mission 24 December 1944 by the 106th Cavalry Group (Mecz).  The 6th Cavalry Group then moved with the Third Army to the “Battle of the Bulge,” were the 6th Squadron entered the line on the right flank of the 4th Armored Division, southeast of Bastogne, while the 28th Squadron, with Group Headquarters, proceeded to Recogne.  The mission assigned was that of locating the enemy force in the Bastogne area and of determining the limit of enemy advance.  The 6th Squadron rejoined the group at Recogne 2 days later, and went into action on the left (west) flank of the 28th Squadron.  A 6th Squadron officer patrol made the first contact with British forces to the north, thus determining the limit of enemy advance.  On 30 December the group went back to the east and entered the line between the 35th and 26th Infantry Divisions in the Lintange-Surre area where it remained until 13 January 1945 .  During this period, the group assisted in reducing an enemy pocket which had been holding up  the corps’ advance.  On 9-10 January 1945 the group advanced through Betlange, Harlange, Lutremange, Watrange, Tarchamps, and Sollez, thus enabling the infantry on the flanks to advance and reduce a dangerous enemy pocket.  For this action the 6th Cavalry Group, with attached units, received the Presidential Unit Citation. 

The group then advanced with III Corps through Wiltz and Wilmerwiltz to the Our River.  On 3 February 1945 , it took over a sector from Clarveauz to Viandan.  The group then returned to VIII Corps control and advanced through Viandan, Waldoreg, Falkenstein, capturing 312 concrete pillboxes in the vicinity of Bauler.  The group then slugged its way through Waxweiler and east to Lasel.  Moving north it was in the middle of the surrender of the German Army west of the Rhine in the vicinity of Spessart-Andernach.  The next mission was to screen along the west bank of the Rhine in the Koblenz-Boppard area.  The 6th Group crossed the Rhine through the 87th Division at Boppard with the mission of reaching the autobahn south of Giessen as soon as possible -- this advance of 50 airline (150 ground) miles was made in 2 1/2 days.  Next mission, in early April was mopping-up operations along the autobahn toward Berlin in the Eisenach-Gota-Erfurt-Weimar-Neumark area.  Relieved here, the group moved to the south flank of the corps in vicinity of Adorf.  The 6th Group remained in defensive positions until 7 May 1945 when it attacked through Adorf, Mareneukirchen, Erlbach.  On 8 May 1945 all forward advance of the group ceased as the war ended.

This article is extracted from a supplemental student text (undated) written for the US Army Armor School by LTC (Ret) James W. Cooke